Thursday 4 October 2012

Asserting the One-Party State

No Labour Leader, old or new enough to be wet behind the ears, can ever lay claim to Disraeli, and his heir Macmillan's mantle.  Yet it seems distasteful -  so Ken Livingstone-ish -  to exemplify Ed Miliband's  'One' speech, and his political claims, with the National Socialist 

'eine Volk, eine Partei,  ein Fuhrer!'

It is more on the Miliband scale as well to identify his demand for the one-party state (not one nation, not one nation at all) with

'One people one country! One country one party! One party one leader! One leader -  Kaunda! '

though 'one leader -  Miliband'  doesn't have quite the rhythmic force of the African cry.

4 comments:

lilith said...

Quite so.

Nomad said...

I met Ken Kaunda briefly in the mid-late 1980s. He was (outwardly at least) a pleasant but tough guy with a sense of humour who ruled with a rod of iron (or else!) of his benighted Zambians.

Like many African dictators of the time he had his own personal trade mark which they always carried with them on walkabouts or drive pasts - a fly whisk, a walking stick, a large easily recognisable hat etc. His was a fluttering white hanky held always in his left hand. Very effete for a tough bullyboy!

hatfield girl said...

Nomad, you shorten the six degrees of separation rule. Know Nomad and there are only two degrees.

Zambia's last century history since independence is worth a look,L. The kind of state and governance Kaunda instigated is very Labour-like (or, rather, Labor wannabe).

Nomad said...

Quite so, HG - Hence my nom de plume (which belongs to me and not my aunt!)